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I've see such bags in use before, either roomy sail bags or "sausage bags" as we called them in the early '80s.  There was a time when you could buy them, but I haven't gone looking for one lately to know if they're still out there.  One minor warning: If you leave a headsail hanked on all the time without covering the luff completely, the rope up the luff (if you have a rope luff) will shrink.   That makes for a lousy set of the headsail because the luff line is now 18" shorter than the sail!  You end up with ghastly horizontal folds in the sail that won't pull out no matter how hard you pull on the haliard.  I just had to repair my #3 that had that problem.  If you intend to use a headsail cover in a long term application, make sure it goes right around the sail, hanks and all.  If you have a sail that has those symptoms, the repair is not difficult if you do your own minor sail repairs - just open up the sail near the head, add line as needed (I whip and stitch), then sew it back up again.  Voila.

Hello Stefan;

I work in the town in Meaford, Ont., and Gary Bannister keeps a Contessa 32 in the marina here.  I see him occasionally and would be willing to ask him if there is any definitive way to date your boat next time I see him at his boat.  There may have been design or construction quirks that he may be familiar with that would help narrow it down.

Hi Seeadler,

Thanks for the photos.  I have table envy.  If you built the table top, you did a fine job; I especially like the edge trim.  I've priced out furniture grade plywood with different veneers and was shocked and appalled by the price.  My quest now is to go yard saling (yard sailing?) and come up with a coffee table or end table with a nice top that I could re-work into the board I need.  I don't want to sacrifice the original table in case I ever (gulp) sell the boat.

Your suggestion is similar to my thoughts but I need to come up with a collapsible or removable support system for the board when it is in table mode.  Is your table pole telescopic or variable in height by any chance?  It looks like it is.  Adrian suggested a removable pole - another possibility.  Yours appears to be mounted farther aft than in my factory built layout, is it?  I hadn't thought of that, but it makes sense for meal time as it give better access to the galley when the table is up. Mine is inconvenient where it is.

I like the enclosure under the bottom companionway step too - an additional couple of cubic feet of storage never hurts...

Yes, it's me AGAIN.  Confession time: I work with boats for a living and play with boats in my free time and so my head is always full of boat thoughts.  Pardon me if I seem, well, full of boat thoughts.  Anyhoo - a brain storm for those who are looking to work with a heating or cooking appliance where one is not originally accomodated.  Here goes:

I have a tiny backpacking stove, an MSR model that comes with a folding aluminum heat shield/wind screen.  What if one were to adapt this idea to a boat?  If you had the Origo heater/cooker (what Shannon referred to as a soccer ball!), or any other small stove for that matter, you could set it down low in the cabin - say on the floor, or on a settee without the cushion, then put a temporary heat shield around it to keep from combusting combustables.  You could probably fake one up out of a heavy aluminum foil turkey roasting pan, or cookie sheets, or find your local sourse of thin aluminum or stainless sheet and make up something that is hinged.  Again, such things can be aquired for camp stoves (Colgan or Coglans or whoever it is that sells camping accessories sells 'em).  Check one out for a model then make a bigger one.  On the velcro front, you could stick one side on the bottom of your cooker (it don't take much, especially if it's the coarse industrial stuff), and the other part on the underside of one of your cabin sole inspection boards.  When you want to use the stove, turn the inspection board over and stick your stove on it, then it's not so likely to slide around or get punted too far.  When you're done, turn the board over again and the velcro disappears.  The same could be done with a settee access board.  It may be a goofy idea, but at least it's an idea, and it may help someone with limited space and funds.

Hi Bilgeret,

I know someone who is looking to offload a storm jib from a CS 27 that might be suitable for the Contessa.  If you'd like I could take a look at it when I get the chance and let you know its condition.  I don't know if the sail is suitable for a CO, you'd have to find one out there to look at.  I could try it on my boat, but you'd have to trust my opinion - yikes!  You're right, sail choices are very subjective, but by reading the entries under the topic "How old are your sails" and the entries here, other CO owners have ditched the original 150% and have moved to either a smaller hanked-on headsail compliment, or gone to roller furling.  The only reason I inquired about the general-purpose jib as an option is because I've never used one - always genoa cut sails in fairly close size increments.  I am happy with my 130% and my 100% so I will try leaving the big 150% behind when I feel the need for space and simplicity.  I will also keep my storm jib.  I've had Virago out on a couple of outings already where the #3 was at its limit and the boat didn't really seem to mind, so the storm jib may be a good option to keep open.

I recently bought a shop manual of sorts for my DV8 from a guy in Kingston, Ontario who specializes in Bukh engines.  I don't have his phone number handy, but the business is called Crinmar.  The guy is very helpful and knowlegable, ships parts if need be, and sells manuals.  This manual, combined with the original owner's manual, has been useful.

Hi Adrian,

Wow, quick response time!  I guess I should have mentioned that I am not keen on furlers.  I had one on a previous boat and was underwhelmed by it for several reasons.  The primary reason came when it failed to furl up one day, which is terribly inconvenient when one is alone in a blow!  Yes, I do have a 130% #2 genny that seems to work pretty well in all but the lightest winds and has sufficient power for working through a lumpy sea state when combined with a reefed main. I guess I was wondering if the working jib was meant to be carried in the same wind ranges as the #3 and 2 - is it too big for the 20 knot wind speed range?  Would it draw in, say, the 7 to 10 kn. range?  I've always sailed on racer/cruiser boats with multiple headsails and am not familiar with the use of a cruiser's working jib.  One thought is to simply leave the #1 ashore when I have overnight company aboard.

My lately aquired JJT Contessa came with Raudachal sails and they are in good shape (thankfully!).  From what I can gather the Contessa in Canada came with a working jib and a 150% Genoa - it this correct?  Mine came with no. 1, 2 and 3 genoas ranging from 150% to 100%.  I find it's rather alot of sail to stuff in a small boat when cruising and would be interested to hear comments about the performance of the boat under jib vs. smaller genoas.  I am considering dumping one or more gennys and picking up a jib if it makes sense to do so simply to get rid of some bagged cloth!  The #1 is pretty darn big but can be useful in the summery light airs of the Great Lakes.  She seems to move well under the #2 in anything above a zephyr and so far it seems to be the proverbial workhorse of a sail.  However, the #3 has been a peach in heavy winds and seems to work well in winds well below what I am guessing would be it's theoretical bottom limit.  In short, I have a fair bit of overlap in the middle wind speed ranges and wonder if the jib would give me as much usable variety with fewer sails.  Oh yes, I have a storm jib too, but it has yet come out of its bag.

Let the opinions come!

Deb